


King of My Heart (Body and Soul)

by Daughter_of_the_TARDIS



Series: We're gonna be Royals [3]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Thor (Movies), X-Men - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, BAMF Darcy Lewis, BAMF Remy LeBeau, F/M, Hurt Remy LeBeau, Hurt/Comfort, Logan adopts teenage girls, Mutant Darcy Lewis, Mutants, Papa Bear Logan, Rare Pairings, Secret Relationship, Sisters, Xavier Institute, why isnt that a tag
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-24
Updated: 2020-04-02
Packaged: 2020-07-12 14:54:10
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 20,667
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19948009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Daughter_of_the_TARDIS/pseuds/Daughter_of_the_TARDIS
Summary: Panic - nothing but pure panic, racing through the bond that she had with Remy. It was so quick, she dropped the pan she was holding, curry sauce flying across the room and landing on her skin, burning her in a second. She clutched her head in one hand, leaning against the countertop with the other. Voices barely permeated the fog in her mind, but it faded slightly as the panic faded and was replaced by sorrow and acceptance. Her heart started racing, and she sent frantic panic and worry through their link, only to be met with love. Pure love - the kind that created the best sort of high - filled her body, but the feeling was almost negated by her own worry. There had never been a time in their entire relationship that he had done that before, and the fact that he was now was worrying."Remy's gone."





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [pure_ninja](https://archiveofourown.org/users/pure_ninja/gifts).



> So this is going to be a lot slower to update than Queen of Hearts was - sorry! It's still in the process of being written, and I felt bad that I left you all hanging for so long.

Remy LeBeau was a Louisiana boy, born and bred. So when he woke up in the middle of the frozen tundra, he was not happy, to say the least. It took him a minute to remember what had happened - the mission to Antarctica, the Trial… Rogue. Things snapped into place and he started moving as fast as he could. Everything around him was a blinding white and his limbs were achingly heavy. He was already sleepy, but knew that sleeping was the last thing he should be doing. So he pulled all of his strength, trying to get to his feet. When that didn’t work he started to army crawl, determined to make it. 

There was something wrong with his head - it felt empty, almost, like he was missing something. He just couldn't figure out what it was. He was too cold to think properly, soaked to the bone. He could barely get his eyes open, but when he did he nearly passed out from relief. There were a few shadows on the horizon, and he nearly cried - he would have, if his tear ducts weren’t frozen shut. 

“Help!” he croaked out, barely able to even lift his head. Rogue’s kiss had drained him more than he thought it had. He was dying. He had hoped that he would die someday in bed with Darcy - a peaceful way to go. Or maybe even in a blaze of glory, like some of the other X-Men had. But this - his body slowly shutting down from the freezing cold around him - this was hell. “ _Aidez-moi, s'il vous plaît._ ”

The shadows grew larger, coming closer and closer until they looked like people instead of shapeless shadowed blobs. He nearly sobbed in relief, letting his guard down slightly. Everything would be alright - he could call the Mansion and tell them what happened, he could go home to his Darcy. Everything would be alright. Until the shadows turned into people - ones that Remy recognized from long ago, before he had ever stepped foot in Xavier’s school. The last thing he saw before everything faded to black was a pair of scarlet eyes, sunk deep into a vampirically pale face. Dark hair was slicked back from his face, and a red jewel glistened on his forehead. “Hello again, Remy.” the man said, relishing the look of horror in the other mutant’s eyes when he realized exactly who had found him.

He tried to call out to his wife, to warn her or at least let her know that he was alright. But there was nothing there - a link that had been there for nearly ten years had gone missing.

Remy didn’t even have a second to react before everything went to black.

8888

The trip to Westchester was longer than she remembered, but that could have been just her worry tricking her brain. Every mile seemed to go slower than it should, like the entire world was moving in slow motion except for her. Despite the panic bubbling through her veins and getting worse the longer her bond with Remy was inactive, Darcy couldn't help her growing excitement at returning to her childhood home. The feeling bubbled in her chest. She hadn't been back since she had first left to join Jane in New Mexico all those years ago. Remy came and went as he pleased - he had switched from teaching classes full-time to only helping out as needed so that he could visit Darcy and help his family - but she had been warned long ago not to return until absolutely necessary. She had a feeling that this was the time.

She made her way into Westchester County, ignoring the dirty looks and honked horns that she got as she raced through North Salem, cutting through traffic without care. She promised herself that she would come back through - once she figured out what had happened to Remy. It would be nice to see what the sleepy little town was like now. Kitty had called her years ago to tell her that they had finally gotten a proper mall, but that was the most development that it had had in recent years. Finally, she turned down the road that led to her childhood home, the sound of her bike's engine echoing in the night.

They had updated the Mansion's security since the last time she had been there. A new gate, motion sensors and infra-red cameras aimed at the main road… she went through the list in her head as she saw them all. Remy let her know every time they updated security, just in case something ever happened and she needed to break into the Mansion. A few of the new security measures were things that only he knew about, even - secrets that Scott had asked him to put into place.

It was times like these that she was ridiculously grateful for his paranoia.

She pulled the borrowed bike to a stop in front of the gate, taking a moment to just look at the house itself. It looked the same as it always had - a large, sprawling estate made of white stone and fashioned to look like an old English castle. The perfectly manicured lawns and gardens - complete with stone pathways - gave the old house the perfect cover. To the outside world, Xavier’s School was just what it was advertised as. An elite boarding school that taught everything that its students would ever need to know. They knew that a lot of the school's students went on to do amazing things, but an equal number stayed at the school and became teachers. But they just saw an exclusive boarding school, not a haven for mutants. She could see a few kids outside, studying or playing. A small smile curled across her face as her mind flashed back to a time Before - before aliens and demigods and metal men in suits. When the most that she had to worry about was if Beast would catch her next prank before Cyclops fell into her trap. She shook her head, letting her smile fall. Those days were long gone now.

“Can I help you?” the intercom crackled to life with a screech of static, making Darcy jump slightly as she was pulled out of her memories. The person on the other end of the intercom sounded both young and bored to tears. She pulled off her helmet, resting it in her lap as she balanced on the borrowed bike. Her hair fell around her face and she shoved it back out of her way again.

“I’m here to see Professor Xavier,” she said, raising her voice enough for it to be picked up by the tiny microphone in the speaker grill.

“I'm sorry, ma'am, but we are currently not enrolling students. If you would -" she cut the other person off before they could continue talking. She remembered giving the same lecture to people who came up to the door - a lot of the time it was parents who wanted to get their children into the School. 

“I’m not a parent,” she said, rolling her eyes slightly. “I used to be a student - my husband works here.”

The silence on the other end of the line let her know exactly what they thought about that. “Look, ask the Professor if you don’t believe me.” Darcy said, letting out an exasperated huff. Her body ached from her tight grip on the bike, and all she wanted was to get inside the Mansion and find out exactly what was going on. “But hurry would you? It’s cold out here.”

“And what exactly am I supposed to tell him?” the voice over the intercom asked, sounding irritated. Not that Darcy blamed her, really - it was far too late at night for this, and was most likely going to turn into an even longer one.

"Tell them that Fortuna came home."


	2. Chapter 2

The gates opened a moment later, and she made her way down the mile-long drive to the Mansion. A new wing had been added on since she had left, and there was a bit of charred grass out front that made her smile. A familiar redhead was standing on the front steps, with two younger girls flanking her, one on either side. They were all watching her carefully, tensed and ready to attack at the first sign of trouble.

Darcy pulled her bike to a stop in front of them, quickly dismounting. 

"Where’s Gambit?" She asked, nearly tripping up the stairs in her hurry. "I know he’s supposed to be here, he told me that much. But where is he?"

Jean raised an eyebrow at her frantic behavior, but didn't say anything. Normally if Darcy wanted to catch up or was worried about something she would just call. For her to have come back, something had to be seriously wrong. "On a mission with the team." She told her, ignoring the looks the teenagers were shooting her. "Cyclops is leading the new recruits, and Wolverine and Storm are with him. Why?"

Darcy relaxed slightly once she heard that both Logan and Ororo were there to watch out for him. "Something’s wrong with the…" she trailed off, making vague gestures to her head and knowing that Jean would understand what she meant. Sure enough, the redhead nodded, her brows furrowing in concern at the news.

"That's not good." She said, her voice so low that Darcy almost didn't hear her. She went back to a normal volume. "Come inside while we get things figured out. I'll talk to Scott, see what's going on. Maybe give you a chance to clean up." Darcy looked down at herself, blushing when she realized the reason for the other woman's comment. She was still covered in the sauce that she had dropped back at the Tower, but dirt and mud had been added on top of that.

"Thanks, Marvel Girl." The teenagers looked at each other in confusion, both of them wondering who the newcomer was talking to. They had never once heard the codename 'Marvel Girl' before, and they had both been at the Institute for almost four years. 

Jean smiled awkwardly. "Actually it’s Phoenix now." She informed her friend, turning and heading towards the School. 

"Really?" Darcy asked, looking at her. Jean almost moved differently - she hadn't exactly been shy when they were in school, but now there was an unheard of level of confidence to the woman. "What the heck did you get up to?" She asked suspiciously.

"You’ve been gone a long time, Fortuna." Jean shrugged. "Things have changed around here."

Darcy looked around, taking in the new students, new wings to the school, and the weary set to Jean's shoulders. “Does Cyclops still make you run five am Danger Room sessions as punishments?” Darcy asked, turning her attention to the two teenagers. When they nodded, she smiled turning her attention back to Jean. “Things haven’t changed that much.”

Darcy turned her attention back to the two teenagers that had been with Jean out front - one shielding the other, but both ready to fight for each other. “Rem's told me about you two.” She said, giving them both her full attention. They were the first thing that she had been able to actually focus on since Remy went silent in her head. But her husband had told her so many stories about the pair in front of her. One of them had her hair cropped short, her leather jacket covered in pins from old punk bands. The other had her long purple hair tied back into pigtails, a curious smile on her face as she studied the newcomer. “Negasonic and Yukio, right?” she asked, making sure to use their codenames. Codenames had become traditional in the mutant community, even for those who didn’t want a spandex-clad lifestyle. A codename was either chosen by the mutant themself, or gifted to them by a mentor. It also served to protect them from anyone who might be searching for them - a codename could only get you so far when looking for someone before you were turned away. 

The girls nodded, looking wary. “How do you know that?” the scary one - Negasonic - asked. She was shielding Yukio behind her, something that the other girl didn't seem pleased about. 

"Just lucky, I guess." She quipped, and Jean had to fight to hide her grin. They made their way inside, and Darcy had to work to fight the nostalgia welling up inside her at the sight of her home. 

If the two girls had any more questions about if the strange newcomer belonged at the Institute, they were answered almost immediately by one of the Mansion's most reclusive residents. Dr. Hank McCoy barely left his basement laboratory, let alone the Mansion itself. The only times that they could get him to leave his lab were for missions and spaghetti night.

“Hey Beast.” the woman called out, making him look up from the papers gripped in one clawed hand. "How's it hanging?"

“The Lady Fortuna." Dr. McCoy replied, a slightly fanged smile on his face. "And how is the big city treating you, my dear?". He asked, loping over to meet them. He pulled her into a hug, one that she willingly accepted. Because of his feral-like mutation, Hank could sense emotions almost as well as Logan could.

"Doing well." She told him as she pulled away, an easy grin on her face despite how worried she was. Beast had always been one of the best at hugs, the kind that made all of a person’s worries melt away. "I read your last paper on mutates and their variations from mutants." 

He raised a furry blue eyebrow, perching on the back of the couch next to her. "I wasn’t aware that such research applied to your chosen field of study."

It doesn't." She admitted, taking in the room around her as they talked. While the Manor itself hadn't changed over the years, the various decorations had been replaced time and time again. That was the issue with raising a house full of powered teenagers - things tended to break. "But Dr. Banner is interested in it, so I like to keep up to date."

"Speaking of, what brings you out here to our area?" Hank asked, looking confused. "The last I heard, you and Dr. Foster were making some truly amazing breakthroughs."

"Something's wrong." Was all that Darcy would say on the matter, but even that was enough to make the Beast go still. He could remember every other time that Darcy had said those words since she had arrived at the Mansion, all skin and bones hanging off of the back of Logan's bike. He even kept a list of all of the occasions, determined to find out what exactly was dire enough that Darcy LeBeau nee Lewis knew it was coming ahead of time.

"Well then," the Beast said, a serious air dropping around him like a mantle, "let's see what we can accomplish, shall we?"


	3. Chapter 3

It was another few hours before the Blackbird landed, it's jets powerful enough to rattle the windows of the school. Darcy was waiting for them all when they disembarked, her eyes locked on Logan. As soon as she saw the look on his face, she knew exactly what had happened - for the first time in her life, Logan looked as old as he was. Every year was written on his face, shining out from his eyes. He had been the first off the plane, sniffing the air as he walked - scenting her. It was something he did with all his pups the second he was in the same room as them - part of his feral instincts. He pulled off his mask as he walked towards her, shaking out the sweat from his hair.

"Hey, Darcy-darlin'." Logan said, still covered in blood and with his uniform ripped to shreds. He didn't seem at all surprised to find Darcy waiting for them - instead he just looked resigned. Some of the newer X-Men looked like they wanted to ask about her, but we're stopped by a single look from Cyclops.

"Where’s Gambit?" She asked, a part of her already knowing the answer to her question even as she refused to accept it. Out of the corner of her eye she could see her sisters watching her, and Scott was talking with Jean. She didn't see Ororo anywhere, and the members of the team that she didn't recognize were trying to be subtle in watching her.

"Why don't we go somewhere else ta talk, darlin." Logan said, keeping his voice low. This was the sort of information that no one wanted to have to give, which was why he had been the one to volunteer to tell her. 

He could tell by the look in her eyes that she already knew what he had to tell her and was bracing herself for the words. She had probably known from the moment the plane landed, he realized, and the Cajun hadn't come running out to greet her. "Just tell me, Logan." She pleaded, and he felt his heart clench in his chest. Big pale eyes stared up at him, and he fought the urge to pull her into a hug and scent her properly. His rational side shoved his feral aside, saying that his pup wouldn't like being scented in public, or when she was already feeling weak.

He watched her carefully, making sure that she wasn't going to do anything stupid before telling her the news. "Remy's gone, Darce. He died in Antarctica."

She nodded, absorbing the news without giving away any of her emotions on the subject. "Where is he?" She asked, managing to keep her composure. A part of her had known that this was going to be the answer even before their bond had snapped - when he sent her as much love as he could. Not to mention, they had both known that Remy would most likely die first - she just hadn't expected it to be so soon. She took a deep breath, promising herself a chance to break down later on when she was alone. 

"Can I see him?" She asked, looking up at her father-figure with pure misery radiating from her. She managed to hide it well from the newcomers, but some of the people in the room had grown up with her - they could tell just how much pain she was in. It was in the way she held herself, in the way her voice came out higher than normal.

Logan winced. "Darlin… we had to leave him behind." Logan told her, and that was when she lost it. She had been holding out on seeing him again - on seeing him one last time.

No." She whispered the word, her eyes filling with tears. She would have collapsed if not for Logan keeping her upright.

"Pup -" Logan began, but she cut him off, pushing him away from her. He made a wounded sound in the back of his throat, but for the first time in her life she ignored it. 

"Who told you that he was dead? You wouldn't have left him behind, so who told you?" She snapped, looking like she was seconds from attacking. "You left him behind?"

"We didn't have a choice!" Logan protested, but her words hit him hard. He had tried to find the Cajun - searched for hours until Storm and Cyclops had dragged him away. But no matter how hard he searched, the only thing he could smell was snow. No cloves, no paint, no cigarettes or ridiculously expensive shampoo. Just snow.

Darcy could feel his honesty - there was something about ferals that had their emotions running so much stronger than others. "Who told you he was dead?" She asked, calming down slightly. It wasn't much, but it was enough to allow her to think clearly again. Her mind was racing at a million miles an hour, trying to calculate every probability, every scenario of what could have possibly happened to her husband. It was a skill that had been honed in the field with the X-Men - figuring out the most likely plans as they came, adapting scenarios as they appeared - and that she had perfected in her time at Stark Industries.

"Rogue." Logan said, gesturing to a face that Darcy didn't recognize. She was tall and slender, dressed in green and yellow leathers with a bomber jacket thrown overtop. A white streak through her hair gave her a wild look, and she watched the proceedings with just a little too much interest. Darcy paid attention to her - particularly, her emotions.

"You found his body?" Darcy asked, honing in on the woman's emotions. Her own were scattered, but that almost made it easier for her to focus in on the ones the other woman was projecting. Of course, that made it that much easier for her to realize when she was being lied to.

There was no time for subtleties, no time for long, drawn out games. This was life or death - there was every possibility that Remy was still laying out on the ice somewhere. Even his accelerated metabolism and high body heat could only save him for so long. "Why are you lying to them?" Darcy asked, her expression furious as she turned on the other woman. "What did you do to him?"

"I don't know what yah're talkin' 'bout." The woman denied. She crossed her arms over her chest, turning away from them. "Who the hell are yah, anyway?"

"I'm Darcy Lewis." She said, moving to stand right in front of the other woman. She was almost half a foot shorter than the southern belle, but she didn't let that stop her. If she could face off against Captain America in the middle of one of his lectures, she could absolutely handle one spoiled X-baby. "Remy's wife."

But the woman just shook her head, completely denying what Darcy was telling her. "No way." She countered, crossing her arms over her chest. "He says his heart belongs tah lady luck and no one else." The woman said, rolling her eyes at what she thought was nothing more than the superstition of a gambler and a thief.

But Darcy smirked. "He always was a sap." She said, a faint blush covering her cheeks - one that had her sisters smiling for the first time since the Blackbird landed. "What if I told you my codename was Fortuna."

She could hear whispers starting as soon as she said the old codename, and couldn't help the slight smile that crossed over her face. It was good to know that no matter how long she had been gone, there were still stories being told. 

"And you’re lying." She announced, slightly enjoying the look of panic that crossed the woman's face. "He's not dead.". Their link might not have been working properly, but she knew that he wasn't. They had spent the last ten years of their lives together - she had a feeling that if he was dead, the universe would have just… stopped.

"Ah’m not lyin’!" Rogue snapped, pulling Darcy out of her thoughts. "Ah found ‘im in the ice, dead."

For the first time, a sliver of doubt wormed its way into her brain. But she quickly got rid of it - Remy wouldn’t give up on her, and she wouldn’t give up on him. “He’s not dead until I see a body.” she said, focusing in on the emotions coming off of the other woman. She practically reeked of fear and desperation, and that was what she latched onto. The other woman was hiding something from them, she knew it.

"Tell the truth, Rogue." Darcy said, adding a layer of compulsion to her words. She stalked forward, white eyes practically glowing as she stared the other woman down. "Tell them what you did."

Logan growled - his pup was getting overwhelmed. "Kit, Jubes - get her out of here." He snarled. The others moves forward, but it was too late.

"What ah did?" Rogue shot back, anger in her tone. The words practically flew out of her mouth, with nothing that she could do to stop them. "What about what he did, huh? What about tha' no-good swamp rat!"

"What exactly are you talking about, Rogue?" Cyclops asked, his voice hard. The other woman had forgotten that he was even in the room, judging by how pale her face became. Darcy couldn't help the smile that crossed her face. She and Scott might not have always seen eye to eye, but he was a good person to have in your corner when you needed him.

The woman in question glared at Darcy, and she knew what was coming before the other woman even said a word. Remy had a long list of sins before he came to the Institute, most of which had been forced on him by Sinister. Some of those sins would have made him Enemy #1 around the house to those who already didn't like him. All she had to do was reveal any of them - his history with the Thieves Guild, the accidental death of Julien Bourdeaux, his time spent with Sinister. 

Of course, then she opened her mouth, and Darcy knew that things were way worse than she thought. All it took was three little words to have such an impact. "The Morlock Massacre."

Everyone in the room but Darcy flinched, something that Scott noticed almost immediately. He turned his attention to her - they might have been adults now, but they had still grown up together. And despite all the time that had passed since then, he could still read her just as well 

"You knew?" He asked - the only reason Darcy could even tell he was glaring at her was the years of experience she had with reading his expressions.

She nodded, arms crossed over her chest as she prepared for the outrage about to hit her. "Of course I knew, Fearless." She said. "But it wasn't my secret to tell. Of course, now the question is how do you know that?" She asked, directing her attention to Rogue.

"Someone must'ah told me, I guess." She shrugged, evading the question. "Ain't hard ta learn the gossip 'round here."

But Darcy was already shaking her head. "No." She said. "Cause Rem never told anyone that, except for me. And even then it was only because I found him one day on the anniversary - drunk half to death - and made him tell me because he was so guilty over what happened that he nearly killed himself. And I sure as hell didn't tell you."

She flushed. "Ah… ah…" 

"You what?" Logan asked, and Rogue flinched. There was an edge to his voice that she had never heard aimed at her before.

"Ah kissed 'im." At her admission, people's looks of confusion vanished, which only made Darcy even more confused. That didn't seem like enough of an explanation, unless the woman's mutant power was a succubus of some sort.

"Hang on - very confused over here. How exactly does you kissing my husband mean you know everything about him?" Darcy asked. 

"It's Rogue's power." Cyclops explained, keeping a careful eye on the two women. It wouldn't have surprised him at all if someone - namely Darcy - attacked Rogue, and he wouldn't have really blamed them. He and Gambit might not have always seen eye to eye, but the Cajun was a good man. "One touch and she gets all of a person's memories and powers.

Darcy absorbed that information the way she did everything else - with a nod and a nonplussed look. "So you know everything Rem's ever done… and you still left him to die." She said, eyes narrowing. "He's done a lot of bad things, but always had the best intentions. And no matter what, he's always tried to do what was right in the end."

"Yeah right."

"Excuse me?" Darcy asked, turning to look at who had spoken. 

"Oh come on, why are you all acting surprised?" Warren asked, already stripping off his leather gear. "I always knew that the street rat was no good. " He sneered.

A low growl filled the room, and everyone looked towards the Wolverine. But it wasn't him - which they realized when Darcy launched herself at the man.


	4. Chapter 4

He was warm - that was the first thing he realized, and the most important. He didn’t think that he would ever actually feel completely warm ever again, that he would ever get the chill out of his bones. But he was warm for the moment, so that was okay. 

He took stock of his facilities - he still had all of his fingers and toes, and all of his other body parts. There was still that empty feeling in the back of his head, but he couldn't quite figure out what it was. It wasn’t missing memories, he still had all of those… Remy’s eyes flew open as he shot up. The last thing that he remembered was the freezing cold of the Arctic, and the pure red vampiric eyes of Sinister. Which meant that the warmth around him - while not as dangerous as the freezing Arctic - was still inherently dangerous. He had to move.

He was jerked back into the bed as soon as he tried to jump out of it, his joints protesting as he was yanked backwards. Looking down, he saw the silver shine of handcuffs wrapped around his wrists. He was able to move just enough to touch the metal that the cuffs were secured to, and he grinned. 

But when he tried to push a charge into it - tried to blow up the metal bedframe so that he could escape - nothing happened. The ache in his arms was still there, as well - something that should have quickly healed.

“We ain’t stupid, Gambit.” a deep, rumbling growl that had haunted him since the first time they met said. Victor Creed pulled himself to his feet, towering over the Cajun tied to the bed. “Knew ta stick a collar on ya while we had a chance.” 

Remy hid his growing panic behind an insolent grin. “If y’ wanted t’ play, monsieur chat,” he purred, “all y’ had t’ do was ask.”. Tied to a bed, powerless, and with Sabertooth standing over him - it wasn't exactly what he wanted to wake up to. There were two ways this could go - it could get better, or it could get worse.

He was betting on it getting worse.

"I'm afraid you don't have much of a choice as to your playmates, Gambit."

Remy's voice died out as the man himself walked into the room. Doctor Nathaniel Essex - Sinister - was still just as terrifying as he had been when Remy was in his late teens. The only difference was that now Remy was older, and he was better at hiding his fear.

And, if he was very lucky - and he usually was - there was already someone looking for him.

Still, he couldn't help the way he tensed up as the scientist came closer. He tensed, ready to spring into action the second the man tried to touch him, but already knowing that there was nothing he could do.

"Hello again, Gambit." Sinister said, his voice quiet as he ran a hand through the Cajun's hair.

"Long time no see." Remy replied, quirking his lips in something slightly resembling a smile. "Could have been longer, but den beggars can't be choosers, non?"

"You always were talkative. I wonder what it would take to shut you up." 

More dan you've got, putain." The Cajun growled.

"We'll see." Sinister said, and then he struck.

Remy screamed with the pain, but he refused to give any ground. He had spent years building up his telepathic shields, to the point where not even Charles Xavier himself could get in. And if Xavier couldn't get in, no one could - something that Sinister learned quickly.

"Your shielding has improved - I'm unable to get into your head, Gambit." The scientist almost sounded impressed. "Don't worry - that can be fixed."

It was that moment - when Sinister mentioned his mind - that Remy realized what was missing. There was no Darcy in the back of his mind. No constant stream of emotion, the background noise in his mind that he had gotten so used to that it was mainly tuned out. He didn't think he would ever be able to take it for granted again. He tried to keep himself from noticably reacting, but he couldn't help but worry about what could have happened to make their link stop working. 

He strained to contact her even as he was moved from the bed to a gurney and shackled again. He knew what was in store for him, and wanted to at least have momentary comfort before it began. But there was no Darcy on the other end - only that darkness. 

He kept his eyes closed, not wanting to see where they were taking him. At some point he would have to pay attention to it, so that he could memorize a path to help him escape. But for now he didn't want to see what was in store for him, and he knew that Sinister liked to see the fear on his prisoners faces as he tortured them. He liked to know that his victims knew he was in complete control of what happened to them, and that their fates lay in his hands. Remy wasn't about to give him the satisfaction.

Even as Sinister began his torture, all that the Cajun could think about was his wife, and what she would be thinking when she couldn't feel him. He knew that she would panic and go back to the Mansion to find out what had happened to him. After that it would be up to their family to keep her from running into trouble.

He only hoped that she wouldn't lose hope.


	5. Chapter 5

"What are you doing Fortuna?" Cyclops asked once everything had calmed down again. Darcy's confrontation with Rogue was over for now. Warren was off from the group, nursing his wounds and glaring at Darcy. Every once in a while she would look his way, but her mind was on more important things. She still had a lot to do to get her husband back. Judging by the looks that she was receiving, there weren't many here who would help her in her search. That was where reinforcements came in, even as she wondered what had happened. While she and Remy had always had a few people in the Mansion who didn't like them, they had always had more friends than enemies.

She had pulled out her cellphone, stopping what she was doing to answer Cyclops' question. "Making a few phone calls - I left in a hurry and people are worried." She said, already dialing. "Plus I have to let the inlaws know what's going on." Before she could press the call button, her phone went off.

_She blinded me with science_   
_And hit me with technology_

She ignored the looks that she was getting for the ringtone, quickly answering the call. "Janie! Hi, I'm fine. Yes, I'm at home. No, Tony can't track me and neither can JARVIS." She paused for a moment, listening to the person on the other end of the line. "Really. Well tell Steve -" she walked away, still on the phone with Logan following after her. The hangar doors shut behind her, and the remaining X-Men watched each other nervously. It had been a long day, getting weirder with the appearance of Remy's wife - a mutant who they had all heard stories about. Most of the tales of Fortuna were still classified, but if someone asked the right person - usually Remy - they would hear a few stories.

"That could have gone better." Warren - codename Angel - said, rolling his eyes and drawing everyone's attention to him. He was nursing several wounds that were quickly turning into bruises, much to his dismay.

But Kitty laughed - a sharp, bitter sound that had all the others turning to look at her and Jubilee. None of the newer mutants had ever heard her make a noise like that before - then again, today was proving to have a lot of firsts. "Really, Warren? I'm surprised she didn't rip your wings off.". The phaser said, arms crossed over her chest as she scowled at him. "None of us would have blamed her."

"Come on, Jubes." Kitty said, looking irritated. She was itching to leave and go after her sister, determined to make sure that she was alright. "Let's go."

8888

They couldn't find her, but then no one had ever been able to find Darcy if she didn't want to be found. So instead they waited for her to come to them, settling in on the couch in the main living room with what appeared to be the Mansion's entire supply of blankets. Finally, Logan brought her to them, wrapped up in a blanket so she couldn't run away again. She was fighting against him - mainly for show, because nothing could escape the Wolverine if he didn't want it to.

“Budge up, half-pint.” Logan said, moving them both over enough to slide Darcy in between them. Despite her protests, she automatically curled into her sisters, taking comfort in the familiar feeling. Days when the three of them could all be together were few and far between, now that they were all adults. Jubilee and Kitty would come down to the city every once in a while, and there was always Skype and texting. But it wasn't the same as having twenty-four-hour access to each other.

A bell rang somewhere deep inside the school, and the sisters all looked at each other. "Three… two… one." They said, smiling as the sound of stampeding children grew louder. Classes were over for the day, which meant one thing - an army of bored, powered teenagers. Absolute chaos.

The Howlett sisters - none of them sisters by blood, nor any of them actually Howletts - watched as they came crashing through the halls. They were flying, teleporting, racing - anything but walking. Screams and shouts of laughter echoed through the halls.

Despite the utter chaos going on around her, Darcy couldn't help the small smile that crossed her face. "I missed this." She admitted, leaning into her sister's side. The trio watched the semi-controlled chaos around them, giggling at the barely-hidden curiosity that was aimed at Darcy. She waved at a few of the more obvious starers, amusement washing over her when they blushed at being caught.

Slowly, the people that she grew up with came to find her. Kitty and Jubilee had been the first, and they were quickly joined by Ororo. The normally serene woman was shattered, quickly curling into the dark-haired pile. They hid her under their blankets - Storm couldn't be seen having a breakdown at the loss of a team member, no matter how much Ororo wanted to mourn her brother. Jean came and sat with them for a bit - even Scott came to check on them. Kurt joined them, with only minimal complaints about his shedding from the girls. It was nice being home again. While the Avengers Tower had become a home away from home, and their brownstone apartment in Hell's Kitchen was where they lived, the Institute would always be her first home. It was where she met her family, where she found her place… where she met her husband. 

Like hell was it going to be the place where she lost him.

"I'm just having a hard time believing he's gone." Darcy whispered. She had been running the numbers in her head - even though he had still been alive when the X-Men had left Antarctica, he was gone without some sort of miracle pulling him out. "He wouldn't leave me, not like this."

Ororo's arms tightened around her waist, blue eyes meeting white as she peered out from under the blankets. "I am having the same thoughts, I believe." She admitted. She looked like she was about to say something else when they were interrupted.

"You’re Professor LeBeau’s wife?” a voice asked, and Darcy looked down. It was a little boy - maybe six years old - with coppery red hair that fell down to his shoulders. Golden slit-pupiled eyes stared up at her, and tiny patches of black scales grew on his face.

“I am.” she told him, completely smitten with the child already. Remy had always said that it was the eyes - she always had a soft spot for those with visible mutations. “But you can call me Darcy. What’s your name?”

"Anthony." The boy said, a slight lisp in his voice.

"Hey, snake-butt. How are you doing?” Kitty said, holding out her hands to the boy. He gleefully accepted, scrambling up to sit on her lap.

"You guys know each other?" Darcy asked, looking amused at the way the boy climbed her sister, clinging to her for a moment. He quickly transferred over until he was in Darcy's lap, curling up into a ball in her arms.

"Sure we do, right kiddo?" Jubilee asked, reaching over to ruffle his hair. He nodded, hair flying in every direction. "Remy is Anthony's favorite." She explained, and Darcy's arms tightened around him slightly. That explained the sadness that she felt coming off of him in waves.

"Don't worry, kiddo." She said, trying to keep her worry out of her voice. "I'm sure Remy's fine - we just need to find him."

"He's not dead." Anthony said, his voice so quiet that she barely heard him. "Zira would have told me."

Her heart began to speed up - the last few flickers of hope she had started to bloom again. "Who's Zira?" Darcy asked, looking to her sisters for clarification. 

"Anthony’s best friend - they came to the school around the same time." Jubilee said. "They're attached at the hip worse than we were."

Kitty scoffed. "Like that's possible."

"Anthony, where is Zira?" Darcy asked, ignoring her sisters with the ease that came with years of practice. "Can you take me to him?"

The little boy nodded, looking excited at the thought of seeing his friend. He scrambled off of her lap, accidentally kicking Ororo in the process. He pulled her up off of the couch, dragging her along behind him. Anthony was practically bouncing with excitement, pulling her through the halls of the school. It didn’t take her long to realize where they were heading - the place of too many late-night study sessions and book reports. 

Darcy started looking around as soon as they got inside - there wasn’t anybody in the entire place, as far as she could tell. But Anthony kept yanking on her hand, pulling her deeper and deeper into the Library.

“Zira! There you are!” Anthony finally shouted, looking ridiculously pleased with himself. Darcy looked ahead to see who exactly had captured so much of Anthony’s attention. 

“There’s really no need to shout, my dear!” someone hissed, and Darcy pulled back. It sounded as if one of the stacks of books had started talking to her. It was only when she looked over the stacks that she understood - another kid, maybe a year older than Anthony, sat there. His white-blonde hair frizzed out in every direction, startlingly blue eyes gazing at them reproachfully. “This is a library, after all.”

“You must be Zira.” Darcy said, a grim smile her only greeting to the kid in front of her. He looked at her over little glasses, and she almost smiled for real. He was adorable, really - like Beast, but without all the fur. Despite being seven, maybe eight at the oldest, he gave off an air of being centuries old.

“Yes, who are you?” 

“Darcy LeBeau. I think you know my husband.” she assumed he did - Anthony seemed infatuated with him, enough that Remy had to have taken the kid under his wing.

The kid hesitated, and Anthony rolled his eyes. “It’s Gambit, Zira.” he hissed under his breath, looking embarrassed at his friend’s lack of knowledge.

“Anthony said you saw something - that he’s alive?” Darcy asked. Everything was numb at this point - the sheer amount of emotion that she had felt over the last twenty-four hours had worn her out to the point that she was just completely numb to it all. All she wanted was to get her husband back home - then she would deal with all of the trauma.

“Well, yes -” he began, looking hesitant. 

“Where is he?” she asked, her mind racing as she plotted. She could take Ororo, Kitty, Jubilee, and Logan to go rescue him. Taking him back to Avengers Tower after that would be best - after seeing the way that some of the newer people treated Remy, she didn’t want him to be anywhere near them if she could help it.

The kid shrugged. "I don't know, I'm afraid." He replied. "All I could see was red eyes."

“Can you tell me anything else?” she asked. “Anything about the person, or where they were?”

Zira looked apologetic even as he shook his head. "The only thing that I saw was the red eyes… and a strong sense of fear."

Red eyes and fear. There was only one mutant out there that matched that description, and who would take the time to rescue her husband from the freezing cold.

She felt her blood run cold at the knowledge, and for the first time since her husband's disappearance, she hoped he was dead.

That would be better than leaving him in the hands of Sinister. Anything would be.


	6. Chapter 6

He wasn't sure how long he had been stuck here - something that was never a good sign, especially when trapped. But there were no windows to use to tell the time with, let alone a clock. When he wasn’t shackled to a table in Sinister’s lab, he was in his cell. So far, it hadn’t been anything too bad compared to Sinister’s usual levels of hospitality. He hadn’t had anything to eat since he arrived, and only small amounts to drink. He had been taken out of his cell three times so far, each time to do a basic medical diagnostic. He shuddered to think of what exactly they were going to do to him that required this level of baseline testing.

"Need t' get back t' m' Darcy." He mumbled - that was the only thing that was keeping him going. Otherwise he didn’t know what he would do. He had figured it out - if he wasn’t feeling anything on his end of the link, that meant that Darcy must not have been feeling anything on her end. She would be pissed off if he died now, and the last thing that he wanted was to upset her. He had managed to snag one of the medical tools the last time that they had taken him to the lab, hiding it away in his sleeve. He waited until they had deposited him back in his cell, then set to work. It took him longer than usual to undo the lock, as he couldn't see what he was doing and hadn't eaten in several days. But eventually he got it - the inhibitor collar clicked open, coming apart in his hands. He quickly fixed it around his neck so that it still looked like it was on - it wouldn't do to play his hand so soon.

After that, all he could do was wait.

8888

Another few hours had passed before anyone came back into the room. He bided his time, letting them shackle him to a gurney without much of a fight. 

As soon as the guards were distracted, he started fiddling with the cuffs, working them off of his wrists.  
"Come on den, my Lady - don't let de luck fail me now." He muttered, smiling triumphantly when the shackles around his wrists came loose. 

"What did you say?" The guard asked, barely even turning to look at him. Of course, that was bad for him - if he had turned he would have seen the tell-tale pink glow that signaled Gambit's powers. Remy almost laughed - he could see Sinister and Sabertooth at the end of the hallway, waiting for him. Too bad for them, he mused. He wouldn't make it that far, not if he had anything to say on the matter.

"I said," the Cajun began, his eyes flaring with his powers. "Gambit's gettin' out o' here!". 

His charge lasted for only a few seconds, but that was enough. He threw whatever he could get his hands on, laughing like a madman as the base exploded around him. Both Sinister and Creed were thrown against the wall - as was Remy. He had been without his powers for so long that when they came back, they erupted out of him. It was enough force to have him slam his head against the wall and his vision to go dark for just a second.

When his vision cleared, his heart sank. “Oh, you shouldn't have done that." A voice mused. Everything around him was blurred, but he could still make out Sinister standing over him. 

"What am I going to do with you, Gambit?" The scientist asked as he leaned over. Remy felt the bite of a needle sliding into his skin, then the syrupyness of drugs in his veins.

"Just y' wait, _connard._ " Remy slurred, his eyes closing against his will. "Y'll have more dan enough o' Remy soon enough."

8888

Three days had passed by in a blur. Darcy had stayed up for the first fifty hours or so, working with Ororo and Scott to try and pinpoint exactly where Remy might be. His last known location was in Antarctica, but they didn't know anything more than that. Sinister had had a lot of bases over the years, and there was always the possibility that he was using a new one. They went through every bit of information they could possibly gather, leaving no metaphorical stone unturned.

But eventually Logan had kicked down the door, dragging her to a guest room to sleep. She had fought him, kicking and screaming, but he won. After a full twenty-four hours of sleep, Logan had let her out of bed.

Darcy made her way down to the dock, taking in the sight of the old boathouse that she and Remy had called home for so long. According to Kitty, he still lived there - only letting a few select people in. The door had been repainted, and some new flowers grew out back which had to be Ororo's work. Remy had whatever the opposite of a green thumb was - every plant that he touched died.

Everywhere she went in the school, eyes followed her. The Mansion’s rumor mill was ablaze and she and her husband were the main source of entertainment. They weren’t the ‘they had a fight and Remy’s planning something to make up for it’ kind of rumors, or the ‘Fortuna and Gambit’s last mission’ rumors that she had been used to. No one could believe that the 'Ragin' Cajun' could have a domestic side. Which was ridiculous, in her opinion. He was Remy - cooking dinner with a deck of cards in hand, stealing from thieves to get her the best presents. He may not have done it perfectly, but Remy LeBeau was very good at domestic.

She opened the door, smiling at the scent of cloves and cigarette smoke that washed over her - the same scent that greeted her every time she made it back to their apartment in Hell’s Kitchen. It was fainter here than it should have been, but he had been gone for almost a week now - first for the mission itself, then left for dead by people who were supposed to watch his back. And if things didn’t go right, their house would never smell like him again.

The whole place was a lot cleaner than she remembered it being - like Remy had decided to surprise her after she had left for a weekend, instead of being gone for six years. Other than the lack of mess, their little house looked almost exactly the same. Same furniture, same pictures on the walls, same dents in the floor from the one time the Brotherhood had literally knocked down their front door.

There was the watercolor that Remy had painted as a present for their first wedding anniversary - an abstract in red and black, white and blue. His easel was set up in the corner, a halfway-finished painting resting on it. A few of her old knitting projects were laying around the room, and Darcy knew that if she checked the master bedroom, the very first blanket that she ever knitted would be at the foot of the bed. It was lopsided and misshapen and a veritable rainbow of colors. In her opinion, it was the ugliest thing that she had ever seen, and she kept trying to get rid of it. But Remy loved it - kept saving it from the trash whenever she tried to get rid of it.

She made her way into the kitchen, unsurprised to find that everything was kept in the same places it had always been in. Her body moved on autopilot, starting up a pot of coffee without much thought.

She twisted the chain around her neck, worrying the locket there - one that Remy had stolen back from her father, years ago. Inside it was still the picture of her mother on one side, but she had taken out the picture of her father on the other and replaced it with one of her husband. In it, he was laughing hard enough for his ever-present sunglasses to have fallen off. What wasn’t obvious from the picture was that he was laughing because he had just seen Bobby freeze Warren in midair. At that point, she collapsed.

Tears ran down her face as she tried to process everything that had happened over the last few days, including what she had barely allowed herself to think about. Even when she was in the War Room with Cyclops and Storm, she just kept telling herself that it was another exercise. It had almost been easier when she thought he was dead, in a way. Now that she knew what he was going through, her brain was stuck in a constant cycle of what-ifs - what if she had been there, what if Sinister hadn't come, what if they didn't have their link. Each new what-if created another scenario in her head, until she had to stop.

While Darcy knew that she couldn't have been there - Mattie herself had told her to stay away from the Mansion to keep Remy safe - there was still a part of her that wished she had stayed.

“Hello?” a voice called out, and she froze. "Is anyone here?". Heels clacked against the floor and Darcy watched as the person came in.

"Can I help you?" Darcy asked, looking incredulously at the other woman who had walked into the boathouse. Rogue had changed out of her uniform, slipping into more casual clothing. She looked around her at their home with obvious curiosity, taking in every detail - from the paintings and photographs on the walls to the extra trench coat and steel-toed boots by the door.

"Sorry… ah've never seen inside here bahfore." The woman said. She was looking around in interest. "Gambit nevah let me in bahfore."

"He hasn't let you in now." Darcy pointed out, arching an eyebrow at the woman. She got up from her spot on the floor, trying to wipe away the mascara on her face without the other woman seeing. "What do you want?"

"Ah wanted tah come and say hello."

"Seriously?" She asked, staring the other woman down. She looked like the Louisiana girl she was - plaid shirt unbuttoned over a plain top, cowboy boots on her feet. "You left my husband for dead in the middle of the fucking tundra. And now you, what - want to gossip over coffee?"

Rogue bristled with anger. "Ah did what ah had tah do! Yah know what he did!"

"See, that's the thing. You don't get to be judge, jury, and executioner. That's not how we work - that's not how the world works." Darcy said, looking directly at the other woman and enjoying the way she had trouble meeting her eyes. She was about to tell her more when her phone went off again.

 _Has he lost his mind?_ _Can he see or is he blind?_ _Can he walk at all_ _Or if he moves will he fall?_

"Sorry, I gotta get this." She said, not even bothering to hide how relieved she really was. "Hey, Tony. What's up?"

"What's up?" The genius on the other end of the phone asked, sounding irritated. "You go nearly catatonic on the floor then steal a bike to get out and you’re going to ask what’s up?"

"I asked Janie to let you know what was going on."

"She did. But it wasn't enough info. How is everyone? Growly? The other triplets? How are you?"

"Everyone is fine. I'm… I'm okay, I think."

"What do you need?" The engineer asked. "Money, supplies, a Quinjet - JARVIS, do you need JARVIS?"

"Nothing, Tony." She said quickly. If she didn't cut him off soon, he'd be offering her the whole of SI. He was like that - Tony never told people how much he cared about them. Instead he gave ridiculous gifts and over the top gestures to show how much he cared.

"Take as much time off as you need, Pep's already approved it."

"Love you too, Tony." She said, pouring as much sincerity into her voice as possible.

Tony scoffed, but she could tell he got the message. "Don't know what you're talking about, shortstack." He replied. "Now bring that asshole back alive, I still need to beat him at poker."


	7. Chapter 7

It had been a week since they had returned home after the Trial. The first few days had been rough, but then Darcy had started to take care of herself - until they got a lead. Sabertooth had been spotted up in Canada. Since Sabertooth was known to be a part of the Marauders, she dug in, trying to use him to figure out where Remy was. After that, it was a constant battle to get her to eat or sleep. She was becoming as bad as the scientists that she took care of. Usually it was Logan, Kitty, or Jubilee who took care of her, sometimes Ororo. But even Scott stepped in a few times, trying to get Darcy to at least take a break for long enough to see sunlight.

Logan had finally managed to get Darcy to fall asleep. She was dozing with her head in his lap, using one of Remy's spare trench coats as a blanket. Every once in a while she would twitch, her face screwing up as she tried to reconnect her bond with Remy. She had finally caved and admitted that their bond had snapped, much to the worry of the Professor and Jean. 

They worried that Darcy would go mad because of the missing connection. That if they couldn't save Remy, they would lose Darcy as well. Logan tried to push all of that from his mind for the moment, and focus in on the present. Darcy was passed out on his lap, hair wild around her face. He could remember every time that she had fallen asleep like this since she was a kid - since he brought her to the Mansion. Back then, she was a scrawny little kid who could have been blown over by a stiff wind. It had taken her over a month for her to open up to anybody, and every morning he would wake up to find that she had snuck into his room at some point in the night. And while his feral side was glad to have his pup back home where she belonged, it still hurt him that she had only come home because her mate had been taken. Of course, his pup had explained long ago why she stayed away, but that knowledge didn't keep the Wolverine from pining.

It was at that moment that a scent hit his nose. It was tobacco - expensive stuff. Not the cheap kind that he smoked, or the ones that Jubilee thought he didn't know about. They also weren't the clove cigarettes that the Cajun preferred. It was mixed with cologne, and the faintest hint of night air. Logan growled deep in his chest as his claws slowly slid out. There was an intruder in the Mansion. Darcy moved against him, and he stopped her with a low empathic pulse of warning. 

"There's someone in the Mansion." He rumbled, and she nodded, fully awake in seconds. "Stay here." She watched him slip out of the room, claws at the ready. And once he was gone and she was sure he wouldn't be able to hear her, she spoke.

"I don't know how you managed to hide from Wolverine, but I know you're there." She said, her voice low and even. "And unless you come out now, I won't be responsible for what happens to you when he gets back."

"Easy 'dere, _princesse._ " A familiar voice soothed, making her sit up. The trench coat that she had been using as a blanket pooled around her. The intruder came out of the shadows, revealing himself to be a tall, built man that moved with the silence of a Thief. "Just me."

"Henri." Darcy whispered, letting the man pull her in for a hug. The older LeBeau brother held her tightly, giving her a minute to compose herself.

"Hey, Mme. LeBeau." He said, easily accepting her hug. He pressed a kiss to her forehead. "We came to help.". Despite everything that had happened recently, he was still pleased to see that his sister-in-law was in one piece. She looked more than a little worse for wear, but then that was to be expected given the circumstances. 

She went stiff a moment later when she heard the enraged yowl of the Wolverine from somewhere in the Mansion - he had picked up on the fact that someone else was in the room with her. The rest of the house would be awake within minutes, but Henri had already put himself between her and the door - he had never met the Wolverine before, and as such had no idea what exactly it was that he was dealing with.

"Get away from her!" The Wolverine snarled, his eyes glinting feral yellow. There was a growl to his words, a warning to do as the feral said or face the consequences. Henri yelped despite himself - something she would be sure to tease him about once she had diffused the situation.

So despite the death grip that Henri had on her, she jumped back in between the two men. "Logan, no!" She said, flooding the air with as much calm as possible. "It's okay!"

The Wolverine sniffed. "You smell like the Cajun." He noted, relaxing slightly, his eyes losing some of their yellow tinge. He was still ready for battle, but less likely to murder the newcomer in the next minute.

"And y' look like _un chat._ " The man retorted, still trying to keep Darcy shielded behind him. It wasn't working well for him, but he was still trying.

"Both of you stand down." Darcy said, rolling her eyes at them. "Logan, this is Henri - Remy's brother. Henri, this is my father, Logan." She glared at him, trying to let him know to stand down. 

Henri relaxed slightly. "Ah, y'r de one dey call de Wolverine, _oui?_ " He asked, moving forward to shake the other man's hand. Logan just glared at him, his claws still at the ready.

"Did Jean-Luc come with you?" Darcy asked, drawing their attention to her.

"How many times, _petite_?" A voice asked from the doorway, right before the King of Thieves stepped through. "Call me Papa.". He was dressed in full Thieves' leathers, his trenchcoat hiding a full assortment of weapons.

Logan practically did a double take when he saw the man standing there. "How - I left you tied up downstairs!" He growled.

But Jean-Luc just grinned. "Ain't de first time I've gotten that response." He said, crossing to pull Darcy into a hug. 

By that point, most of the rest of the Mansion was awake and in the doorway of Logan's room. Scott and Jean were holding them all back, waiting to see what was going on, and Darcy flashed everyone an obviously fake smile. "Everything's fine, guys. Go back to bed - we'll see you at five am for Fearless's attempt at Hell on Earth." 

That earned her a few laughs, and one by one the crowd went away and back to sleep. Ororo hung around for a minute, but was reassured enough after a minute to head back as well.

"Logan, let me introduce you to Jean-Luc and Henri LeBeau."

"Y' have de power of de Guilds at y'r disposal, _mon fille_." Jean Luc said, his position evident in the way he held himself. He was no longer the concerned father - instead he was the Guildmaster of New Orleans, looking for his missing third in command.

"Has Mattie Seen anything?" Darcy asked, and Jean-Luc hesitated just enough for her to know the answer anyway.

" _Oui._ " He answered.

"Well? What is it? The more we know, the sooner we can find him."

" _Petite_ … y'dont want t' hear what Mattie Saw." Jean-Luc admitted. "Would break your heart."

She nodded, squaring her shoulders. She had expected that answer, really. But in a way she was relieved - it meant that her husband was at least still alive. So she pushed down her fears, sealing them away to be dealt with later. Once she's obliterated Sinister and the whole stupid bunch of them, then she'll break down. And not a moment before. 

"But she saw where he is, right?" She asked. Not that she really needed to - Jean-Luc wouldn't have come all this way if he didn't have good news.

Still, his smile and nod made her feel a bit like the weight of the world was coming off of her shoulders. They knew where Remy was now. They could find him.

"Let's get to work."


	8. Chapter 8

Even while his family was plotting his rescue, Remy was struggling. It had been endless tests and surgeries, most of them while he was still conscious. The days had stopped being days - instead they were nothing more than a single stretch of time, occasionally broken up by his pained screams as Sinister played with his insides. He had yet to hear a single whisper in his head from his wife. Anyone else would have lost hope. Accepted that they were going to die at the hands of a madman and called it a day. But he knew better. His lady luck had not abandoned him - she had vowed to be by his side until the day he died. She'd kept that promise for almost ten years, and he knew that she wasn't going to break it now.

"Y' wont get away wit' dis." He said, words slurred and eyes halfway closed. It was taking all of his strength to even force the words out, he was so tired. He tried to keep himself awake for as long as possible, too afraid of what they might do to him while asleep to sleep well. It was bad enough knowing what they did when he was awake.  
"She's lookin' for Remy."

“I'm afraid you're out of luck this time, my dear.” Sinister said, smiling down at the Cajun. There had been a time when Gambit had been one of his greatest successes. Someday he would be again. “The X-Men all believe you're dead.”

But Remy just laughed - a low sound with only a hint of madness in it. It echoed around the room, and the other Marauders looked uneasy. "Ain't never gonna run out of luck. Not while she's lookin' out for me. _Ma bebelle's_ gonna find Remy and bring him home. An’ she’s comin’ for y’.”

"Who?" Sinister asked, turning to look at his former employee. Gambit sounded far too sure of himself for the scientist's liking. “Who is coming?”

"Luck be a lady, to-night." The thief sang, a mad grin stretching his face as blood dripped out of his mouth. The thief was a mess, cuts and bruises littering every inch of visible skin. He was emaciated, covered in dirt and blood and his own sickness. “Luck be a lady, to-night.”

"Take him away." The scientist ordered. Gambit laughed as he was dragged away, still singing.

Despite everything, Sinister felt a chill run down his spine, the song lingering in the air even after Gambit was dragged back to his cell. 

8888

Sinister waited a few hours before going to check in on his newest resident. Gambit had been stuck back into his cell and pumped full of drugs. Now he was laying on the floor of his cell, too drugged to do more than stare up at the ceiling.

"Really, Remy." Sinister sighed, looking down at the other mutant. "You ought to know better by now. I control you."

"No." Remy said, so pumped full of drugs that he could barely move a muscle, let alone control what he was saying. "M' _femme_ controls me, _mon gris-gris."_

"What did he say?" Sinister asked, turning to study the other mutant. Remy's eyes went wide - he had said too much. So he clamped his mouth shut, determined to not say another word. But it was too late.

“Intriguing.” Sinister mused, his eyes dancing as he thought of all the potential that Gambit had just unknowingly handed him. The things that he could do if he got his hands on a mutant with luck powers… the possibilities for study alone were endless, let alone what he could do with a recombination of that DNA.

But Sabretooth was thinking. Gambit had mentioned two different things now - the name Darcy and a girl with luck powers. Separately they didn't mean much, but together…

_I'll show you adorable._

He couldn't help but think of the girl from so many years ago - Jimmy's pup who hadn't backed down from a fight. He had looked her up after their little battle, but hadn't found much. But he knew that her name was Darcy, and that she had been far too lucky for it to be coincidence. He also knew that she had been a student at Xavier's School for Gifted Youngsters at the time. Which made him wonder if this was the same person that Gambit was talking about now. It would be a hell of a coincidence, but then the Cajun had always been good at those. 

He had worked for Sinister for years - the man never lost. He engineered every situation so that he came out on top, or at least ahead. But this time, Creed couldn't help but think that the scientist's luck was going to change.

8888 

Now that the LeBeau men had shown up and given them at least an idea of where to go, the X-Men dug in. They plotted and planned, going over every possibility. Darcy hooked them up with JARVIS, and the AI gave them almost everything at his disposal. Cyclops was impressed with the AI. While the X-Men had different mutants whose powers were similar to what the AI could do, none of them had the same drive to help save their team member that JARVIS did.

It made him wonder where they had broken as a team, that so many of them were willing to leave Gambit to his fate.

Finally, Cyclops gave the call. "X-Men, suit up." He ordered. The mutants nodded, moving off to go get what they would need for the upcoming rescue - including Darcy. "Darcy, what are you doing?" He asked. She turned to look at him, arms crossed over her chest and ready for a fight.

"I’m going out for lunch." She quipped, raising an eyebrow at the man. It was almost funny, she mused - she had been gone for a few years and now Fearless seemed to think that he was actually in charge of her. "What does it look like I’m doing? I’m suiting up."

"You aren’t an X-Man." He reminded her.

"Technically I am." She shot back. "I never actually quit the team."

Scott looked irritated, but knew that he had already lost the battle. There wasn’t much that he could do to stop her from going after her husband, and he wasn’t even sure that he wanted to stop her. Half of his team was so prejudiced against the Cajun that they had left him to die - he wasn't sure that he could trust them to rescue him. “Do you even have a suit?" He asked instead.

Darcy smirked, reaching into the bag that she had kept with her the entire time. She pulled out a handful of material, the silvery gray that the older X-Men were all too familiar with. 

"Courtesy of Tony." She said, unable to hide the fondness in her voice. "I've got no idea what kind of surprises are in it, and I can't wait to find out."

8888

It was fifteen minutes or so before the team reconvened, all of them ready for battle. As she looked around the room, Darcy couldn't help the surge of adrenaline that rushed through her - it was almost like she was nineteen again, all dressed up to head off and save the world. A few costumes had changed in the last few years since she had been gone, but that was it. The only thing missing was the steady presence next to her.

"Here." Kitty said, handing her a mask - there was an entire cabinet full of the things, for when they inevitably got destroyed on missions. "You're a lot more recognizable now than you used to be."

Darcy smiled, awkwardly gripping the mask between her teeth as she pulled her hair back, twisting it out of the way so she could pull her hood up properly. "Thanks, Kit."

Her sister reached over to adjust the mask slightly, sealing it onto her face so that it wouldn't slip off mid-battle. Kitty smiled at her, and Darcy saw her own determination staring back at her. "We're going to bring him home." Kitty said, as if she was daring her sister to argue with her. 

"I know."


	9. Chapter 9

Darcy took a deep breath, looking out at the landscape below her. There was nothing but trees for miles around, with the occasional but of rock to break up the monotony of it. And somewhere down there was a hidden laboratory, that was holding her husband hostage.

What she was planning was stupid. This was the exact kind of stupid that her friends still made fun of Steve for. But she wasn't a former ninety-pound weakling from Brooklyn, and hopefully, that made enough of a difference.

She waited for the right moment, watching the trees pass below. And when everything felt right, she jumped.

She kept herself tucked into a ball for the first few thousand feet, before streamlining her body - just long enough to move faster. Once she was close enough that the ground was only a thousand feet away, she went spread-eagle. The wind resistance slowed her down enough, and the trees slowed her down further. By the time she hit the ground, she was just moving fast enough for a slight pain in her ankles.

They had considered using Nightcrawler for this part of things - a series of teleportation jumps to reach the ground. But in the end, the cloud of smoke and sulfur that Kurt released was too noticeable.

Shadowcat landed gracefully beside her, having phased through everything to keep from being hurt as she jumped. Neither of them had time for the luxury of a parachute - the longer it took for them to make it to the ground, the more of a chance there was of them being discovered.

Darcy made her way through the trees, keeping to the shadows with her sister on her heels. The only sign that they were on the right path was the occasional security camera watching them. She made her way past them - either they would end up malfunctioning, or whoever was watching them would be distracted. Either way, things would work out.

They made their way through the forest, moving as quickly as possible while not making much noise. "I'm in." Darcy whispered, keeping her voice low enough so that it just barely activated the comms unit attached to the skin of her neck.

 _"Copy that, Fortuna."_ Cyclops said, his voice low in her ear. _"Sending in the distraction."_

On the other side of the compound, a low rumbling began. The trees shook, birds flying out of them. A series of explosions went off, and Darcy smirked, eyes lighting up in unholy glee. She had seen Boom-Boom's explosions - tiny marble-sized balls of pure energy that exploded within seconds of leaving her grasp. They would be more than enough to keep the Marauders busy for a few minutes, while Darcy did her part.

Phase one had begun.

8888

"So here's the plan," Cyclops had begun, a few hours earlier. It was almost like old times again, gathering together for a briefing. The War Room was just down the hall from the Danger Room, buried under miles of earth and steel beams. The only real differences were the few newcomers and the lack of a hand holding hers.

Cyclops had a map of the area laid out in front of him, with the mountain that housed Sinister's lab marked out in red. “Boom-Boom will set off a series of explosions - here, here, and here." He gestured.

"Can we trust her?" Darcy asked, keeping her eyes locked on Scott. "I want to keep this in-house as much as possible."

The man nodded, and Darcy could feel his resolve. "Yes, but you can test her for yourself if you like." He offered, gesturing to a slender blonde woman on the other side of the room. Darcy sized her up - she was full of attitude and a willingness to prove herself. But under that was a layer of worry and concern - fear for a friend. Fear for Remy. She would have to do, she realized. It was obvious that there weren’t many people in the Mansion that would be willing to help them at this point.

At some point, she would have to figure out exactly what Remy had done to make so many of the newcomers in the house hate him so much. Warren had always hated him - that was nothing new. For the moment, there were more pressing things to deal with.

“Alright.” she said, nodding her head at the inclusion of the blonde-haired explosive. “So what’s the next step?”

8888

"We're going in."

Scott's voice came through her earpiece, loud and clear. _"Copy that, Fortuna."_

Shadowcat gripped her hand, and Fortuna braced herself as they phased through the wall. She shuddered once they were all the way through - no matter how many times she did it, phasing always felt strange. 

Once on the other side, the duo split up. Shadowcat headed down one hallway, looking for where they would keep any computer equipment. Fortuna headed in the opposite direction - moving downward. From her experience, that was where the cells would be.

Unfortunately, she had far too much experience with these sorts of things. 

She made her way through the base, taking out different guards and scientists as she found them. Bodies were stuffed into closets to keep from being discovered, or thrown down garbage chutes. There were only a few cameras down this far, and it wasn’t hard to dodge them. 

She could hear screams coming from one room as she passed it, but it wasn’t Remy - the voice was too high-pitched. On her way back through, she would stop for them. Right now, there was only one person that she cared about finding. Any other time, she could have just followed their bond to find her husband - it would have led her straight to him. There should have been no need to even wait to find him. But with their bond broken the way it was, there was no way to use it to find him anymore.

Luckily enough, he was in the third cell she looked in. “Oh, Rem.” she breathed out, horrified at the sight in front of her. Remy had only been missing for a little over two weeks, but he looked as though he had been put through months worth of torture in that time. He was emaciated - Remy’s mutation used up so much energy that without the sheer amount of calories he ate on a regular basis, he lost weight so quickly. He was already well on his way to skeletal, covered in his own blood and mottled black and blue with bruises. He was shackled to the wall, arms above his head in a position that she knew had to ache. His head was pressed against his chest, not even moving as she pulled open the cell door. That was what alarmed her most. Remy was always proactive, keeping an eye out for any possible threats that might be coming. For him to not react at all said more than enough about his current state.

 _“Fortuna, status report.”_ the call came over the comms unit. She had forgotten that the others were on the other end of the line for a minute, so caught up in the sight in front of her. 

She turned her comms on, hearing the familiar little crackle of static that meant they were connected. It took a moment to find her voice. “This is Fortuna. I’ve found Gambit. Extracting him now.” she said, not bothering to wait for an answer.

He only reacted when she was a little under a foot away.

“Don’t y’ touch me, _fils de putain!_ ” Remy snarled, jerking backwards instinctively. His body tensed up, waiting for a blow in response. Instead, he felt a gentle hand cup his face, a thumb stroking over his cheekbone. 

“Hey!” a soft voice said, grabbing the man’s attention. He knew that voice. “Hey, its okay Remy, its okay. Just me.”

“Darcy?” Remy asked, trying to look up at her. One of his eyes was so swollen shut that he could barely even open it, but the other one saw her and lit up.

She couldn’t help the tears that welled up in her eyes at the sight of him. “Hey, baby.”

“What are y’ doin’ here?” he asked, hissing out his words. “Y’ shouldn’t be here, _Monsieur_ Essex is lookin’ for y’!”

“Oh my god, let me just leave then and leave you here.” Fortuna mocked, rolling her eyes as she unhooked the shackles that held him to the wall. She caught him when he fell to the ground, bracing him against her. “You okay to walk?” He hesitated, but Remy nodded. “Good.” she said, looping his arm around her shoulder. “Then let’s get you out of here.”

8888

They made it out of the cell that they had been in. As they moved up the corridor as quickly as possible, Darcy opened as many cells as she could, releasing the mutants trapped inside. While they still had inhibitors on them, at least now they had half a chance at escaping.

“What’re y’ doin’ here?” Remy slurred. He was trying his best to keep up with the pace that Darcy had set, but what would have normally been child’s play was now enough to make him stumble.

“I came to get you, obviously.” she said, rolling her eyes at his question. At this point, he was too drugged to even tell if she was rolling her eyes, so he just assumed that she was based on her tone. “Why else would I have come back?”

8888

They were halfway to the rendezvous point when Darcy froze, her eyes fixating on a patch of shadows that was just the faintest bit darker than everything else. Her grip on Remy tightened as she prepared for whatever was coming.

"And you must be the Lady Luck that we've heard so much about." A voice called from the shadows. The very sound made Remy shake, and she gripped him just that little bit tighter to give him something to focus on. “I must say, you did quite excellent work getting in here.”

"Who are you?" She called out, trying to keep herself calm. With how battered Remy's shields were, any panic on her part would transfer to him almost immediately.

"My name is Dr. Nathaniel Essex." The man said as he stepped out of the shadows. A slow smile stretched thin lips to reveal pointed teeth. "But you may call me Sinister."

Fortuna grinned, the gesture not quite meeting her eyes. “I’d rather not, if it’s all the same to you.”

“You intrigue me.” Sinister said, “I must say, it will be interesting to have the matched set.”

" _Non!"_ Remy cried out, eyes wide with panic. He was trying to move in front of her to protect her, but he had been shoved full of so many drugs that he could barely walk, let alone fight. "Don't y' touch her, y' _connard!_ " 

"It'll be okay Rem." Darcy whispered, keeping one hand on her husband at all times. The second that she let go, he would cry out again, and the sound cut through her like a knife every time. "I've got you."

She crouched down, settling Remy against a wall while keeping her eye on the man in front of them.

“Run.” Remy croaked, meeting her eyes the best he could. “ _S’il tu plait, ma bebelle, courir._ ”

She shushed him again, standing back up to face the monster in front of her. He towered over her, a wall of pure muscle. That was okay. The bigger they were, the harder they would fall.

"It's quite amusing that you think that you will be getting out of here." Sinister smirked. His red eyes flashed, and for the first time in her life she understood what people meant when they said that her eyes looked inhuman. His eyes were like pools of blood - lifeless in the worst way.

“It’s even funnier that you think you can stop me.” she said, unclipping her staff from its place at her waist. It grew to full size with the press of a button, and she spun it - once, twice - to get a feel for the weapon again. Her fight against the idiots that had broken into the Tower had been nothing but luck and circumstance. This one had to be more.

She went in hard and all at once, starting with her staff. Sinister managed to dodge the first few swings, landing in a few of his own. But eventually, the staff connected. It hit right under his chin, snapping his head back - not enough to do more than stun him for a few seconds. But the electric charge that raced through it threw him back several feet.

She grinned, now finally knowing why her staff had disappeared for a few days before reappearing in Tony’s lab. She tested out the electricity again, a feral grin lighting up her face before she went in for the kill. The goal was to disorient the other mutant with a series of rapid blows until they were down. Sinister was too big to be taken down any other way. Every hit that he landed felt like a sledgehammer, but she kept going. This was one fight that she could not lose.

Their fight was brutal, with Remy struggling to get up and join in the entire time. Between the combination of the battery of hits, the electric charge running through his body, and the sheer luck against him, it only took fifteen minutes before he was on the floor. Still, she was impressed - he had almost won at a few points here and there. But after everything that had happened at the Tower, Natasha had made her spar with them on a regular basis. That had made her realize that she wasn’t as rusty as she had thought, and had given her an edge. While she had learned many different styles at the Institute, they focused mostly on subduing their enemies. Natasha saw it differently.

 _“Sometimes we have to do things we don’t like in this job._ ” the redheaded Russian had told her friend. _“But it is imperative that we still do them well. I am an Avenger, now. But I was a Widow first. And we always cleaned up the messes left behind.”_

She paused, studying the body at her feet as she debated what to do. What she was considering was wrong - she knew that. But she also knew that Sinister had gone unchecked for decades, had killed countless innocents. And she knew that if he was left alone, eventually he would come after her husband again.

As she moved back towards her husband, she let her modified bo staff run over Sinister’s chest - giving him one last, long jolt of electricity. His body jerked once, and then didn’t move again. Without saying a word she moved back over to Remy, helping him stand and draping one of his arms around her shoulders.

“This is Fortuna.” she said, turning on her comms once they had started moving again. “Almost at the rendezvous point.”

 _“Good.”_ It was Storm who answered this time, with Cyclops having gone to join the battle. _“Any sign of Sinister?”_

She hesitated, debating on how she should answer as she looked behind her at the body, crumpled on the ground. “Nothing.” she said, then walked away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back!!!! I'll be out of work for the next few weeks because of Corona, and so I'm trying to finish all the different Darcy storylines I have going. This one only has a chapter or two left, but then there is still ALoSaAToH - aka Darcy Pendragon - and a different Darcy LeBeau storyline that I haven't started posting yet.


	10. Chapter 10

The ride on the Blackbird was the most painful that she had ever been on. While there had been plenty of times that different X-Men had had to be rescued, or they had had to save captured mutants. This was the first time in a long time - at least for her - that they had had a jet completely full of recently freed mutants, and an exhausted rescue team. She didn’t care about any of that, of course. All that mattered to her was the man curled up next to her. Her head ached, longing to reignite the bond with her husband. But she would have to wait just a bit longer.

Everyone gave them a wide berth - not that she blamed them. Anytime someone got closer than she was comfortable with, Darcy growled. It came from deep in her throat, the same sort of sound that Logan made when he was being particularly territorial.

Remy was curled up next to her, fast asleep. He had started to panic the second that he saw just how many people would be crammed into the Blackbird, and had only stopped when Phoenix had telepathically put him to sleep. They all knew that they would hear it from him later on for that, but none of them cared. As long as they could get him home safely, they would all gladly take the verbal abuse that they were going to get later on.

8888

“Fortuna,” Phoenix called, pulling her friend from her thoughts. “We’re almost at the Institute. Should I wake him up?”

She barely had to think before she had her answer. “No.” she shook her head. “It’ll be easier to get him to Beast if he’s still out of it.” Remy hated the labs enough on a good day - trying to get him to go down there now would be worse than pulling teeth.

When they landed in the hangar, she stuck around just long enough to make sure that Beast had someone to help him carry Remy to the medical labs before heading for the stairs. “Aren’t you coming?” Phoenix asked.

But the brunette shook her head. “Nope.” she said, still moving towards the elevator. “I've got some things that I need to talk over with the Professor.”

Darcy made her way through the school, taking in everything that she had been too depressed to notice lately. There was the old dorm room that she and her sisters had lived in, the window that she used to sneak out of. Up a staircase was the scratches in the railing that Logan had accidentally made when they knocked him backward into said railing. She kept going, reminiscing and ignoring the stares of the students that surrounded her. Finally, she reached the right door - or at least, what she hoped was the right door. It had been a while, and sometimes people moved offices due to not having enough space or attacks from the Brotherhood. “Knock Knock.” she said, pushing it open.

Charles Xavier looked up at her, not seeming at all surprised to see her. Not that she expected him to be - the day that anyone managed to surprise Professor X was the day that they were all doomed. “Darcy.” he greeted, coming out from behind his desk to greet her. “It’s been a long time, my dear.”

“Hi, Professor.” While many of the mutants who came to the Institute saw the older telepath as a father of sorts, he had always been more of a weird uncle. Somehow, she had managed to inherit Logan’s wariness of telepaths despite there not being any actual biological connection between them. “Got a minute?”

“Of course.” Charles agreed, leading the way over to the little seating area on one side of his office. “What can I help you with? Judging by the state of you, I can’t quite decide if your mission was a success or not.” he stated, giving her a quick look over. Darcy looked down at the holes in her uniform and the blood spattering it - she could only imagine how bad her bruises were.

“A success, definitely a success.” she sighed heavily, carefully lowering herself into the chair that the professor pointed out to her. “Jean is bringing Remy down to the med lab right now for Hank to look him over.”

“Excellent news, my dear.” the professor smiled, resting his elbows on the arms of his wheelchair as he folded his hands in front of him. “But I’m assuming that that’s not why you came to see me.”

“I have an idea that I wanted to run by you…” Darcy began, and the Professor smiled. He already had an idea of what she was going to ask, of course - as much as he tried to leave people’s thoughts alone, some things were just thought so loudly

8888

Even after she was finished talking with the Professor, she took as long as she could to get to Beast’s lab. There were some things that no one ever wanted to do, and seeing their spouse in pain was at the top of that list. Her mind was racing, going over everything that she and the Professor had talked about. While he wasn’t thrilled with the idea that she had had, he also realized that it was, in fact, necessary. With the divide in his team made blatantly obvious by the events of the Trial - not to mention the upswing in mutant activity in the world as the mutant population continued to grow - it only made sense to send specific members of the team to help out the Avengers from time to time. And if one particular X-Man was asked to stay there full time… well, that was between Remy and his wife.

By the time that Darcy made it to the medical labs, Remy had been situated in a bed. Kurt and Jean were still down there with him - everyone else had vanished for a minute or two to get changed out of their suits.

He was hooked up to so many machines that the room was full of them - that was the first thing she noticed when she was finally allowed in to see him. Still, it seemed inconsequential when she actually saw him. She had never seen him in such bad shape before, not once in the ten years that they had known each other. Both his hands were covered in bandages, as was his face. Any visible skin was covered in bruises and cuts, and she could feel tears welling up in her eyes. It had only been three weeks in total between the Trial and bringing Remy home, and yet they had done damage that would take months to fix, if not longer.

That was when her eyes landed on the woman across from her, and she felt the bile rise in her throat. Rogue looked at Remy, her expression full of sympathy. But Darcy felt her emotions - the hatred and disgust that the other woman felt for her husband. She wasn’t even sure why the other woman was here in the first place. 

Darcy moved to stand next to Kurt, leaning into his side when he wrapped his tail around her waist - the same greeting that they had used for years. Her arm slid around his waist, giving him an awkward side-hug. She would deal with the other woman later. “How’s he doing?”

“He’ll be alright, _glücksbringer._ ” Kurt reassured. Despite having spent almost two-thirds of his life in upstate New York, his accent was still as thick as it had been when he first came to the Mansion. “Hank said that he will need much care, but Remy will be fine. He just needs time.”

“Good.” she said with a nod of her head, already making her way to the side of the bed.

For the first time since Darcy had come in, Rogue spoke. “What ahre yah doing?” she asked, the hostility flaring off of her in a wave that made her pause for a second. Only a second, then she continued busting her husband out.

She kept pulling the different monitoring equipment off of him. “Taking him home, duh.” she said, fighting to keep herself from giving into the urge to roll her eyes.

Green eyes flashed, and Rogue glared her down. “He needs medical attention -” 

“And he'll get it.” she interrupted. “But if you think for one second that I'm making him wake up in a lab, with the person who left him behind, then you've got another thing coming.”

Rogue blinked, looking like Darcy had struck her. “Ah didn’t -” she was cut off before she could even finish her defense.

“Keep telling yourself that. Maybe someday you’ll believe it.” Darcy replied, not even bothering to wait for any sort of response before turning away. Her attention turned to the larger of the furry blue mutants in the room. “Hank, you're welcome to come with us. I know Rem would prefer to have you there.” she offered. It was true. While Remy had a standard distrust of anyone in a lab coat, he had also known Hank for enough time that that distrust was almost nonexistent with him.

Hank nodded, already beginning to pack a bag with any equipment he might need. Darcy made a mental note to have JARVIS order him some clothes when they got to the Tower - she knew that he would remember any equipment that he could possibly need, but forget clothes and basic toiletries. “I will check things over with the Professor and Ororo, and let you know then.” he said. The checks were just a formality, of course - if Hank wanted to come with them, he would, and no one could stop him. Judging by the bag he was packing, he was coming.

“We’re gonna try and get out of here as quickly as possible,” she warned, “So be prepared.” he nodded in response before turning his attention back to the bag he held with a foot.

“Hey Darce - you called a ride?” Scott asked, poking his head around the doorframe. He had already changed back into his civilian clothes, swapping out his visor for the ruby quartz sunglasses that she remembered. It was always so strange to see his transition from the strict and stubborn team leader to the slightly less stubborn Scott Summers.

She nodded, before turning to Jean. “Thanks for bringing him down here, Jean. Would you mind helping me get him back upstairs? I thought it would take a bit longer for Tony and the others to get here than it did.”

Jean nodded, a compassionate look on her face. Out of all the people at the Institute, Jean was the one who Darcy had always thought might have a bit of actual empathic power. But she didn’t - she was just that kind of a person. “Of course. Do you want help getting him to New York? I’m sure there are a few people here who would love a chance to say goodbye.”

“Actually…” she mused, turning to look at her pseudo-brother. “Kurt, would you mind bringing people to our house later on? I feel like I’m going to have enough to explain about this move without dealing with that, but I don’t want to wake him just yet.”

“Of course not, _mein freund._ ” the teleporter reassured. He could bring two people with him at a time without getting exhausted, but also knew that Jean and Ororo would prefer to fly themselves.

Darcy flashed him a smile, pure white eyes lighting up with relief. “Thanks, Kurt, you’re the best.” she was about to con

 _Darcy, if you wouldn’t mind making your way to the front lawn, there is someone who is demanding to see you._ the voice of the Professor rang through her head, sounding more than a little frustrated. That didn’t surprise her as much as it did the others - she was more than familiar with just how irritating Tony Stark could be when he put his mind to it. It took all of her willpower to keep from answering out loud - all that time spent talking to JARVIS had undone years of answering in her head.

“Damnit, Tony.” she muttered under her breath, almost growling in her irritation. She hurried out of the lab, entrusting the rest of the process to Kurt - no matter how much she wanted to be the one to help her husband, keeping Tony from potentially ruining any relationship with the X-Men was more important.

8888

“Tony!” Darcy yelled a few minutes later. Despite having been gone for so long, she still remembered all of the shortcuts to get from the subterranean layers of the Mansion to the front lawn. Luckily, this shortcut didn’t involve any sort of phasing like most of the ones that her sister had come up with did.

She arrived to find Tony Stark on the front lawn, a Quinjet parked behind him. Ororo and the Professor were already talking with the mechanic, keeping him entertained to keep him from snooping around too much. While they tended to have more than a few visitors, rarely any of them knew what was hidden inside the school grounds. Even fewer of them had that same curiosity that the renowned scientist and engineer had.

"Hey, shortstack." Tony said, pulling her into a hug while Bruce and Dr. Cho watched as Jean floated Remy out the front doors of the Mansion, still on his hospital bed. They didn’t even bat their eyes, just started to get him loaded onto the Quinjet. “Nice of you to finally give us a call.”

“Sorry, was busy raiding a mad scientist’s lab.” she replied dryly. Even though she was talking with Tony, her eyes didn’t leave her husband for a second. He clapped a hand to her shoulder, pulling her attention away from her husband. Concerned brown eyes met her own.

“He’ll be fine, kiddo.” Tony reassured. “Dr. Cho is the best at what she does, and according to the big blue furball all that we have to do is watch him.” She knew that Tony would be one of the only ones to not try and give her false hope. After everything that had happened with Extremis a few years ago, he knew exactly what it felt like to be powerless while someone you loved was in danger from a mad scientist. It was a strangely specific feeling - one that she hoped none of them would have to deal with ever again.

“Nice outfit.” Tony teased, trying to distract her from her worries for a few extra seconds. “Really brings out your eyes.”

“Thanks.” she shot back. “Are you sure the blood spatter doesn’t detract from it?”

Tony shook his head, ignoring the students who were all peering out of their windows in an attempt to get a glimpse of the famous superhero. Really, it was no different than trying to walk down the street in Manhattan, only these kids were a lot more respectful than most adults. “Nah. Really goes with the bruises you’ve got going on.” 

“Remind me to thank Natasha when we get home - her training saved me a few times.”

He smiled at that. “Come on, shortstack.” he said, gesturing towards the inside of the Quinjet even as he kept one eye on the people loading Remy onboard. “Cap’s cooking.”

“Steve is cooking?” she repeated, raising an eyebrow.

Tony nodded, taking her skepticism into account. “Cap is ordering Chinese.” he corrected, looking as close to sheepish as it was possible for him to look.

She snorted. “Yeah, that sounds a lot more likely.” she said, watching the Mansion shrink away below them. 

“Not gonna lie to you, that place did not look like a secret mutant training facility.” he commented.

Hank snorted from where he sat next to Remy’s gurney, shaking his head. Bruce and Dr. Cho didn’t even react, far too used to Tony. Darcy laughed, rolling her eyes even as she calmed down slightly. Tony was a stable presence at times - the two of them tended to balance each other out, with at least one of them keeping a cool head. “That’s because it’s not, Tony.” she said, still watching the school disappear. “It’s a school, first and foremost.”

“Right.” Tony said, moving to check in on the pilot. Darcy couldn’t see anyone up there, so she assumed that JARVIS was flying them - that, or they had added an invisible pilot to the team roster in the month that she had been gone. “Well, I hope you’re ready to beg for forgiveness, kiddo - everyone was not happy with you just disappearing for a month.”

8888

By the time that they landed at Avengers Tower, the telepathic unconsciousness that Remy was under had been replaced by a drug-induced one. Dr. Cho had decided that it would be better if Remy just stayed asleep until they had at least managed to finish setting all of his injuries. Dr. McCoy had helped them with what medications they could give him, as most sedatives burned through his system in a matter of minutes. He ignored the shocked looks that he received with practiced ease, focusing in on his friend and patient. Then, once he was settled in, the Beast made himself at home with Dr. Banner in his lab.

While the rest of the team tried to talk to Darcy - either to scold her for being gone so long or to welcome her back - none of them could get to her. She refused to leave her husband’s side, not even to change clothes. Almost three days passed before there was a change.

Remy’s eyes fluttered open, his eyes so dilated that she could barely see the red that she loved so much. “Remy?” she said, smiling happily. She pulled away slightly, moving to get the button to summon a nurse. “Hang on, let me get Dr. Cho in here -” 

He cleared his throat, trying to get a word out. “Darcy -” he croaked, before starting to cough.

She moved back next to him, grabbing his hand in her own. “Hey, hey… calm down, relax.” she soothed, sending out waves of calm. While it wasn’t working as well as it would have if their bond was still in place, it still was enough to relax him. “I'm not going anywhere.”

He smiled up at her, and her heart fluttered slightly. “Come here, _bebelle_.” he offered, pulling her hand up to his lips. He pressed a gentle kiss against it, cradling her hand.

"Hey, babe." Darcy said, her voice catching slightly in her throat.

"Darcy?" His voice was hoarse and faded out halfway through, but it was there.

"Yeah, Rem. It's me.” she reassured him. She knew that it would take a little bit of time to convince him that this wasn’t a dream or a hallucination of some kind. After everything that he had been through in the past month, she couldn’t really blame him. 

“Where are we?” he asked, looking around the room in confusion. Remy was intimately familiar with both the X-Men’s medical labs and recovery rooms, and this was neither of them. It almost sounded like a normal hospital, just from the sheer amount of people moving around outside the room. But neither of them would ever go to a normal hospital - they couldn't pass for human enough to risk it.

He could see the panic in her eyes - wherever they were, his wife really did not want to tell him. “Why don’t we talk about that later… you need to rest, Rem.” she tried, moving away again - trying to get to the door so she could call for someone. “Let me just get -”

“Darcy. Where are we?” he asked again, more firmly this time. “Dis isn’t de Mansion.”

She paused, debating with herself about whether or not she could keep things from him. “Avengers tower.” 

“Why are we at de tower?” he asked, confused. He knew that it had been the X-Men who rescued him - Tony was almost as protective of Darcy as he was, and that was saying something. There was no way that it would have been Darcy who pulled him out of Sinister’s lab if her new team had been running his rescue.

Judging by the expression on his wife’s face, she knew exactly what he was thinking, which was partly why she seemed so wary of telling him what was going on. She was biting her lip in the way that was utterly adorable, but also meant that she was trying to figure out how to tell him something that would most likely make him mad.

“The Professor and I set up a new X-Men Initiative - with you at the front.” she said slowly, measuring her words. But when she saw the confusion on his face, she hurried with the rest of what she had to say. “We can talk about all of the details later, but basically it means that you won’t have to go back to the Mansion anymore. I made sure of it.”

Remy stared at her, stunned, for a few minutes. “What de hell did y’ do dat for?” he finally asked, his voice measured and controlled in a way that would mean ridiculous rage coming from anyone else. It still meant the same thing coming from him, he was just better at hiding it than most people.

“What did you want me to do?” Darcy asked, pulling away slightly. White eyes filled with tears - all of her anger and frustration from the past few weeks trying to overflow. “Just stand there and watch them all treat you like that?”

“I wanted y’ t’ not make de decision wit’out me.” he shot back, struggling to sit up in the bed. “We make decisions t’gether, _mais_ , have y’ forgotten dat?”

Darcy winced - she hadn’t forgotten, she had just put it lower on her list of priorities. “We already live here, Rem. How is this any different?”

“De only difference is y’ didn’t talk t’ Remy about dis first.”

“I wasn’t going to just stand there and let them badmouth you,” she snapped, her temper finally reaching its breaking point, “now would you lay down and stay still!”

His temper eased slightly - despite how ridiculously easy his temper could flare up, he could never stay mad at her for more than a few minutes. “While I ‘preciate it when y’ get all strict wit’ Remy, _bebelle_ , dis ain’t de best time t’ be doin’ it.” he drawled, eyes sparkling with mischief.

She let out a watery laugh, wiping the tears from her face. There was a part of her that was still just processing the fact that he was alive - reminding her every few minutes that he was warm and whole and here, laying in the bed in front of her. “Shut up and kiss me, LeBeau.” she ordered, bending over him. One of her hands tangled in his hair - entirely too greasy for either of their liking, but that could be easily fixed. There were more important things to focus on.

“As _ma femme_ demands.”

She kissed him, careful to keep from accidentally touching any of the medical equipment that was keeping him alive. Both of them went deep inside their heads even as their mouths moved against each other, tracing the pathways that used to hold their bond. Edges were smoothed into place and pieces stitched back together. Their link clicked back into place, and both husband and wife sighed in relief. Relief and love washed over both of them, along with sorrow and guilt, and forgiveness.

“Welcome back, honey.” Darcy said, finally curling up next to him. The adrenaline that had kept her going for the last few days was finally gone, and she knew that she was about to seriously crash. 

“Home sweet home.” he murmured, pressing one last kiss into her hair before falling asleep.


	11. Epilogue

Mrs. Darcy LeBeau was the head of SI Research & Development. This was an undisputed fact. It never made any sense to any new scientists starting with the company, or the handful of interns that they got every year. She wasn’t even technically a scientist - she had her Masters in Political Science. She was a tiny woman with blue eyes and glasses, and long brown hair that did not meet safety regulations as she tended to leave it down. There was a whiteboard in front of her office that read ‘It had been __ days since our last explosion’. That number rarely - if ever - made it into the double digits. None of them could really understand why she was there at all. She didn’t take sass from anyone, and anyone who thought that they could treat her differently because she was a mutant was quickly shown the door.

They never saw it until they went through their first Science! Binge. The Science! Binges were legendary, but no one ever believed that they existed until they saw them happen. 

A binge was just what it sounded like - at least four of the main scientists, usually the Scientists Three and at least one lab head all went on binges. That meant at least twenty hours of nonstop science, without any breaks for either food or sleep. Sometimes they wouldn’t have a Binge for months, and other times they would have three in one week. Every time, they called Darcy. She would come in like a force of nature - whether it was 11 PM or 3 AM - and take over, shoving food into her scientists before sending them off to bed. Even if it took her shutting down the whole floor just to get them to leave, she would do it. Once the situation had been handled, she would get back to whatever it was she was doing - whether that meant going home to sleep or breaking up yet another fight between the physics and chemistry departments.

It was impressive.

After that, they tended to be far more respectful towards their Head of the Lab. Which of course meant that they tended to overlook some of her more insane behavior - they did it for Dr. Stark on a daily basis, it was the least that they could do for the Pepper Potts of R&D. So when they saw her come out of the elevators, dragging someone along behind her, they barely even batted an eye. 

Remy dodged a scientist, his coat flaring out behind him. “Darcy, where de hell are y’ takin’ me?” he sighed. If it was anyone else pulling him like that, he would have had a much stronger reaction. But this was son femme, and whether he liked to admit it or not, she almost always got what she wanted.

“Don’t get all growly with me, mister.” she shot back, tracking the organized chaos going on around them. She let go of him long enough to turn off the flame on a bunsen burner right before the chemicals it was heating exploded, then grabbed ahold of him again. “I already told you.”

His eyes widened, and he groaned. But despite his theatrics, he didn’t fight against his wife pulling him across the room. “No.”

“Yes.”

“Darcy, no.”

She didn’t even look back at him, just kept pulling him through the lab space. They dodged tables and scientists, worse than any sort of obstacle course that Logan could have possibly come up with. “Darcy yes.” she shot back.

Despite everything, he couldn’t keep his smile off of his face at the look of determination that she wore. “Y’ want a _bébé, cherie,_ we can do dat. Can do all de practicin’ y’ want. But y’ can't just keep him.”

“Rem, you haven't even met him yet." Darcy said, still dragging her husband along by the arm. They were almost there - she could see him through the glass walls that led to Tony’s private lab. “Trust me, you’ll love him.”

"I don’ need t’ meet him." Remy argued, rolling his eyes. "We ain’t keepin’ no spider-kid!"

The doors opened before she even had a chance to ask FRIDAY to open them, the AI already knowing what she was going to ask. The sounds of AC/DC came through into the main floor as soon as the door opened, nearly deafening a few people. 

“FRI, volume down by seventy-five percent, please.” she called out, ignoring the irritation on Tony’s face when he realized what was going on. “Pete!” Darcy called out, marching into the middle of the room. “Front and center, kiddo.”

“Hey!” Tony objected, pulling his attention away from the blueprints in front of him. “What, no, that’s my kid, you can’t have him.”

“Shut up Tony, I can have him if he wants me to. Which sounded bad out loud, so we’re gonna pretend I didn’t say that.”

“Hey… uh, hey, Mrs. LeBeau, what’s up?” Remy had missed the teenager sitting in a corner of the lab at first - his attention was focused in on the actual lab itself. But now that he saw the kid, he couldn’t help but wonder what exactly had made his wife want to adopt the child. He had curly brown hair and eyes, and looked like a normal teenager for the most part. His shirt read, ‘listen up math, I’m not a therapist. Solve your own problems’. Remy snorted - Beast would love this kid. “Listen, whatever it is I promise I didn’t do it.”

“It's totally fine, Pete.” she said, reassuring the teenager. Ever since the first time that he had seen her rip an overeager intern a new one for giving Jane coffee after she had hit her limit, he had been terrified of doing anything to earn that temper. “Just blame Tony like we always do, ok?”

“Hey!” the engineer squawked at her words. 

“Like you didn’t already know.” Darcy snarked back, the fondness in her voice evident. “Pete, I wanted you to meet someone - this is my husband, Remy.”

The kid smiled, seemingly confused as to why they were being introduced - not that Remy blamed him. “Hey! I'm Peter, nice to meet you.”

“Remy, take off your glasses.”

“ _Quoi?_ ” Remy looked at his wife, not quite believing what she was asking of him. He had thought that she liked the kid in front of them - she had definitely spent enough time at home gushing about how smart and sweet he was. Most people when running in the opposite direction when faced with his eyes for the first time.

“Just do it.” she asked, squeezing his hand in reassurance. And - silently resigning himself to whatever screaming terror the poor kid would start. He slowly brought up a hand, grabbing onto the frames of his glasses and preparing himself for what was to come.

“What?” Peter asked, looking confused. “Why does he need to - whoa your eyes are so cool! Is it weird to see like that - like do you see everything tinted red or do colors still work normally?” Remy started, his brain stopping for a second in the face of the sheer excitement on the teenager’s face. Darcy looked on in amusement at the total identity crisis that her husband was having - no one had ever reacted to him like this before. Excited questions instead of fearful cries. “Is it like night vision - that would be so cool - what kind of powers do you have? Are they like Mrs. LeBeau’s? Mr. Stark told me about them once. Hey, have you ever seen that old movie, Dirty Harry? You know the scene, where -”

Darcy couldn’t help the snort of laughter that escaped her - both at the flood of words racing out of Peter and the sheer shock in her husband’s eyes. “Slow down, Petey-Pie.” she suggested, smiling at the faint blush that crossed the teenager's cheeks at the nickname. 

“Don’t call me that!” he grumbled, still looking pleased. But now her main concern was Remy. He hadn’t moved even an inch since Peter had started talking, completely frozen in shock. It was almost impressive - people had been trying to get Gambit to stop moving for years and all it took was one teenager. But Darcy could feel his emotions - shock and joy and relief all mixed together into one overpowering, overwhelming ball of emotion - and grabbed his hand tight.

“You alright?” she asked, keeping her voice low. 

“ _Oui._ ” he replied, resettling his glasses back onto his face. Some of the tension eased from his body once they were back into place - those glasses were his shield against the outside world.

“So, what do you say babe?” she asked, turning to look at her husband. “Can I keep him?”

“What?” Peter protested, looking just a little bit offended. “I’m not a puppy.”

“No, y’ can’t keep him.” 

“Why?”

“But…” he said, a wicked smile playing across his face, and there was a certain heat in his eyes as he studied his wife. “we can keep tryin’ fo’ a _petit enfant_ of our own.”

Darcy studied him for a moment, feeling his emotions washing over her like a wave. After that, it barely took a second for her to make a decision. “Bye!” she called, not even bothering to look at them as she started to drag her husband back out of the labs. Not that he protested - even now, months after the Trial, labs still made him more nervous than ever. He didn’t think that it would ever fully go away. “Don't wait up!”

“Get out of my tower, you animals.” Tony teased, waving them off.

Peter Parker looked around - at Mr. Stark, who had already turned back to the project in front of him, and the other scientists, who didn’t even react to the whirlwind of energy that had stormed in and then left just as quickly. “What just happened?” he asked. 

Tony shook his head. “Don’t worry about it kid - you’ll figure it out when you’re older.”


End file.
